An annual celebration of Bowling Green’s LGBTQ community will return to Circus Square Park this weekend.
Volunteers with Bowling Green Fairness started the annual Pride Festival in 2017 as a way to celebrate the region’s LGBTQ community and advocate for further acceptance.
Bowling Green has been at the crux of the statewide debate concerning anti-LGBTQ discimination laws. Activists have made multiple attempts at passing a Fairness Ordinance, which would protect LGBTQ residents from discrimation in housing, employment, and public accommodations. The refusal of city commissioners to enact the legislation makes Bowling Green Kentucky’s largest city without a Fairness Ordinance.
Bowling Green Fairness volunteer and Pride Festival organizer Sharon Hunter said one of the goals of the festival is to keep Bowling Green’s lack of a Fairness Ordinance fresh in the minds of the community.
“Every year, we like to remind everyone that not all of us are protected, and this is something that we still need to keep front of mind,” Hunter said.
The festival will feature a march to Bowling Green City Hall to advocate for the passage of the ordinance.
The lineup of events begins Saturday at 10 a.m. with drag performances, musical acts, and vendors. The pride march will take place at 5 p.m., with a Pride Crawl through downtown bars and restaurants wrapping up the evening.
Hunter said organizers are expecting a strong turnout, with far more community engagement than previous versions of the event.
“When I think of this when it began it was very quiet and not as joyful and not as prideful as it is now,” Hunter said.
See a full list of Pride Festival events below:
